Page 13 of Mountain Refuge

“Which we’re doing.” She folded her hands tight enough in her lap to turn her knuckles white, and she worked on putting her mind in the right place to be interrogated.

When they arrived at the red-brick building which housed the sheriff’s office, she thrust the truck door open and strode toward the buildings doors without waiting for Dylan. With his long legs, it didn’t take him long to catch up and reach around her to open the door.

“Do you want me to go with you? For moral support?”

“Sure.” She needed all the help she could muster.

The receptionist motioned for them to have a seat while she finished her phone call, then smiled at Dylan. “Mr. Wyatt, how may I help you?”

~

“We’d like to speak to the sheriff, please.”

“One moment.” She pressed a button on her phone, spoke into the receiver, then smiled. “Go on back. He’s free.”

The walk to the sheriff’s office seemed a lot like a walk to the electric chair. She glanced at the floor to see whether someone had painted the tiles green.

“Relax.” Dylan’s soft touch on the small of her back didn’t calm her. Instead, it sent her emotions whirling like a twister.

At Dylan’s knock, the sheriff bade them enter. His sharp gaze focused on Dani. “Miss Cooper.”

“Sheriff.” Her voice trembled as she took a seat across from him. The vinyl chair squeezed under her and released a soft whoosh of air.

“Dylan.” Sheriff Westbrook stood and offered a handshake. “How can I help the two of you?”

Dylan sat next to Dani. “We have some impending trouble, I fear.” He set Dani’s phone on the sheriff’s desk. “Dani has received some worrisome texts.” He pulled them up on the screen.

The sheriff scrolled through them, a line forming between his eyes. When he finished, he copied and pasted the texts into a text to himself, then met their gazes. “Any idea who is sending these?”

“No, sir.” Dani folded her hands in her lap.

“Roberto family?”

“As far as I know, they are all dead or behind bars.”

Which didn’t mean anything. There were ways of communicating from the inside. Dylan shook his head. “The ranch opens for camps and tours tomorrow, Sheriff.”

He nodded. “Which means one of your guests could be the one sending these.”

“Possibly. We have our first guided camp tour in two weeks, which will include adults. Tomorrow, we have people coming to see what we’re all about, along with a group of school kids.” Dread rose. “I’ll be putting my men on guard, but we can’t be everywhere at once.”

“I might be able to spare someone to act as a ranch hand for a while. He’ll be trained to spot something you or your men might miss.” The sheriff crossed his arms and turned his attention back to Dani. “I advise you not to go anywhere alone, Miss Cooper. At least for the time being.”

“I’m never alone. It’s much worse than that, Sheriff. I always have the twins with me when they’re not at school.”

Dylan’s heart skipped a beat. “They’ll be staying close to the house until we find whoever is sending these texts.” If he could, he’d lock the boys in the house. If he did though, they’d sneak out anyway. By giving them some freedom, he’d have a better chance of knowing where they were at all times.

“I’ll have someone there this afternoon. Do you need anything else?”

Dani shook her head. “My mother is helping on the ranch.”

The sheriff laughed. “God help whoever is threatening you. I wouldn’t want to be on the wrong side of Marilyn Cooper. I came close enough a few months ago.”

Dylan stood. “Thank you. We’ll let you know if anything pops up.”

“Thank you, Sheriff.” Dani sprang to her feet and left the office ahead of Dylan.

In the hallway, he again put his hand on the small of her back. The warmth of her skin seeped through her shirt. “How about some lunch at the diner? Maybe some shopping after lunch until school is out. The boys get out early today, since it’s the last day.”

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